Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2020 i Ask Science and Arts Magazine for Kids and Children

Bottles for Very Old Babies Thousands of years ago, some people in Europe made strange clay cups with little spouts. Some of the cups were shaped like animals. Archaeologists who dug up these ancient cups didn’t know what they were. But new research hints that they were baby bottles. Scientists studied several spouted cups between 2,500 and 3,200 years old. They did chemical tests on the clay to see what the cups might have held. In two cups, they found traces of fat that matched the milk of cows, sheep, or goats. Another cup had traces of milk from pigs or humans. That means long ago, people may have used these cups to feed babies milk. And that would have meant healthier babies—anyone could feed them, when Mom was off…

Bernie Krause likes sounds. When he was a young man, he played guitar and sang with a famous music group called the Weavers. Then he got interested in electronic music, made with computers. And from there, he started making sound effects and music for movies. Sometimes, Krause uses natural sounds as part of his music. The sound of waves crashing, or birds singing, or the wind in the trees. He went out with his microphone and recorded interesting sounds to put in movies or to use in his own songs. As he sat in the woods with his microphone, Krause started thinking about the music that the whole forest made. Instead of trying to capture just the sound of one animal or bird, what could he learn by listening to…

Look, here’s some more on a rock. And on this railing. Here are some patches that look like coins. Is it alive? And what is it? This mysterious flaky growth is lichen. Lichens can be fluffy, leafy, bumpy, frilly, powdery, jelly-like, or crusty. Some kinds hang from trees like beards. Others resemble moss, mushrooms, coral, antlers, trumpets, or octopus suckers. They come in a wide range of colors. Some even glow. Perfect Partners But what are lichens? They look a bit like plants, but they’re not. In fact, lichens are not one thing. They are a partnership between two very different life forms. A lichen is a fungus that grows together with algae, cyanobacteria, or yeast. It takes both partners to make a lichen—it won’t grow if one is missing.…

People often see faces in trees as they walk in the woods. In fact, this is a trick of your brain—our minds look for faces everywhere, and often find them! Seeing faces in things even has a name, pareidolia. For this month’s contest, snap a photo of a face you see in some inanimate object. It could be a tree, or a plug, or the shape of a door handle—who’s watching you? Contest Rules: 1. Your contest entry must be your very own work. Ideas and words should not be copied. 2. Be sure to include your name, age, and address on your entry. 3. Only one entry per person, please. 4. If you want your work returned, enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope. 5. Your entry must be signed or…

If someone asked you if trees could talk to each other, you might say no. But scientists are listening to trees in whole new ways. Now they think the answer to that question is yes. Hidden Helpers Trees don’t whisper to each other on the wind. They talk to each other with the help of fungi (mushrooms) deep underground. Scientists sometimes call this the “wood wide web,” because it’s a bit like an internet for trees. How does it work? Imagine following a tree root deep underground. You notice that the roots are covered in fine white fuzz that stretches out into the soil, like a cottony web. Did spiders do this? No, the white threads are hyphae, the underground part of mushrooms. The hyphae’s job is to soak up…

Broadleaf Forest Look up! Life in the woods is lived on many levels. At the top, the sunny canopy is open to the wind and weather. Moving down, each level of a forest gets a different amount of light and water. Every level has its own community of birds, animals, insects, and plants. There are also many kinds of forests. In a broadleaf (or deciduous) forest, trees shed their leaves every year. Boreal Forest (Taiga) In cold northern forests, many trees are evergreens. They have needles instead of leaves. Just a few feet under the surface, the soil may stay frozen all year round. During the short summers, the ground is wet and boggy. Lichens high in the treetops drop nutrients that enrich the soil. Animals of the taiga survive…

In our October issue we asked you to imagine yourself with a light-up body part. Thanks to all you illuminating imagineers for sharing your glam! Send your letters to Ask Mail, 70 East Lake St., Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601, or have your parent/guardian email us at ask@cricketmedia.com. Dear Marvin, I have a new prank for you. On April Fools Day, put ice in Plush’s pillow before she takes a nap. Your prankster friend, Thomas H., age 8, Wyoming Dear Thomas, Thanks for the early warning. I’ll be sure to check all my bedding VERY carefully. Plush the Vigilant Dear Plush, Hey, no peeking! Marvin Dear Avery, How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck would chuck wood? Chuck In the woods Dear Chuck, If a woodchuck would…